


The Only Thing I Want To Touch

by ClaireKat



Category: Steven Universe (Cartoon)
Genre: F/F, One Shot
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-07-17
Updated: 2015-07-17
Packaged: 2018-04-09 20:26:56
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,890
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/4363058
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ClaireKat/pseuds/ClaireKat
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Ruby and Sapphire have a fight and Rose and Pearl have to figure out how to fix it.</p>
            </blockquote>





	The Only Thing I Want To Touch

**Author's Note:**

> I JUST WANTED TO WRITE ABOUT ALL MY GEM FEELINGS OKAY??? The summary is lame and the title is misleading but OH WELL. Also HOW ABOUT THAT STEVEN BOMB GUYS???? I just have too many feelings. I hope you enjoy!

The first time they fought, it was volcanic. Explosive. Off the charts. The two seemingly tiny and unintimidating Gems had managed to turn an outcropping of healthy yet sparsely decorated land into a landscape that was barely inhabitable anymore; one half turned to melting fire, the other turned to solid ice. It was wondrous to Rose that these two Gems even had enough power and rage stored up in their bodies separately to unleash as has they had on the area of land that she had specifically selected to utilize for necessary training measures. She had tried to pick a mostly flat and open plain, one where the risk of harming any of the native creatures would be minimal while also hard to locate considering the dense foliage and high mountain peaks that surrounded it. Now it was more of a danger to the Gems that were preparing to fight for this planet, to defend this place to the end. Rose wasn’t sure if she was even going to be able to pull these two promising Gems back together, let alone maintain the composure to lead an entire army against Homeworld’s formidable enforcements.

She sat silently, perched on the peak of one of the surrounding mountains as she observed and documented the damage that the Gems had done, whether they had even meant to cause any definitive “damage” or not. She sighed into her hands and ruffled her hair in frustration, her concentration on her inner turmoil pausing for a moment as she felt the dainty touch of another Gem grace her shoulder. Her eyes uplifted, the Gem at her side appeared to be none other than Pearl, her dedicated right hand, the Gem that never seemed to leave her side and always attempted to provide whatever aid that might be possible to give. Pearl greeted Rose with a soft smile, and Rose responded by taking her hand gently, stroking it softly as she shifted to allow Pearl to take a seat beside her. Pearl complied without saying a word, casting her measured gaze out over the ravaged landscape; Rose couldn’t tell what she was thinking.

“I think we need to go and talk to them.”

“What?” The idea of interrupting the silent war that appeared to be taking place between the two Gems who usually preferred to stay permanently fused was a shocking proposition to Rose Quartz…especially coming from Pearl. Pearl, the one who was always more content to sit quietly on the sidelines, to not interfere in the thick of battles that were not her own. Pearl was not a fighter, and yet she had agreed to lay down her life, to sacrifice everything she had for Rose…there would be other times to consider the drastic nature of such matters, though. Rose turned her full attention to Pearl, gently nudging her shoulder until Pearl’s genuine, clear, and unwavering eyes answered her.

“I said I think that it would be best if we go and talk to the Gems. Ruby and Sapphire, if I’m not mistaken? The two Gems that prefer to exist permanently as a fusion known as Garnet…Garnet is one of the ones that you requested fight on the front lines with you, correct? She’s surprisingly strong, very reflexive and adaptable in battle. She carries out her fights without losing focus or strength, no matter how many obstacles might be thrown into her path. Truly an impressive Gem…it’s almost comical how hotheaded the two Gems that comprise her appear to be, hm?”

“Why do you think we should talk to them…why should we get involved? What can we possibly do to fix what’s apparently fallen out between them? Although I feel sympathy for those Gems, I don’t know the first thing about trying to successfully patch up a shattered relationship—”

“I find it hard to believe that their relationship is shattered, Rose,” Pearl spoke confidently, tightening her grip on Rose’s hand before rising from her seat. “Here, if you’re not sure to go about it, why don’t we go to them together? I confess, I don’t think I know the best way to go about repairing this minor rift between them, but perhaps between the two of us…we can figure it out?”

Rose lifted her eyes to look at Pearl, examining the soft yet determined expression on the pale Gem’s face. Without any words passing between them, Rose understood that Pearl was just as worried and anxious as she was…but as always she was prepared to do anything and everything she could to make it right. Perhaps Pearl had a point…if they could just get them to talk to each other, to open the communication channels between them, they might be able to help the two Gems bridge this gap. After a deep, settling breath, Rose stood and patted Pearl tenderly on the head. She ran her fingers through Pearl’s silky hair, her lips spreading into a smile as she finally gave the Gem an affirmative nod.

“Yes, perhaps you’re right. Why don’t I go talk to Ruby, and you can see if Sapphire has anything to say? We’ll meet with them in the middle, and hopefully find a way able to help them work through this little bump in the road. I mean, if we don’t prove to our comrades that we’re there for them, even when they’re having trouble with each other, than what kind of comrades…or rather, what kind of friends are we?”

Pearl wiped a tear from her eye before burying herself in Rose, giving her a simultaneously thankful and reassuring hug before stepping back and clenching her fist in a resolute, excited gesture. “Leave it to me, Rose! I promise I’ll talk some sense into Sapphire, and we’ll have this situation settled in no time!”

The two Gems departed in their respective directions, and Rose found herself having to summon a protective bubble as she approached the flaming red Gem. The ground was melting and bubbling beneath where she sat, and Rose tried not to get too dejected too quickly. She hesitantly walked around to stand in front of her, surprised to see that the steaming Gem had identically steaming tears evaporating from her cheeks almost instantaneously after touching them.

This Gem, this Ruby, was in immense pain being at odds with the only other Gem that she felt really understood her. Ruby clenched her fists and turned from Rose reflexively, banging her fist on the ground next to her and causing a minor lava spirt to rise up in reaction. She threw her hands up and let out a frustrated grunt. Was there anything she could do to stop this aching, shaking feeling that only seemed to overwhelm her by the second? She crushed her temples between her palms as she attempted to rid her skull of these heavy, bad feelings. She had made Sapphire hate her, she had made Sapphire want to be separated from her, probably forever…this was all her fault, but Sapphire still wouldn’t even tell her how to fix it. She was just so irritated with everything right now!

“Why, why, why did this have to happen?! It’s such a misunderstanding, but she doesn’t even take the time to understand, she just acts like because she knows everything she doesn’t _have_ to take the time to understand anything! Ugh, I _hate_ this! I hate…I hate everything!”

“Ruby…”

“Go away! I don’t want to see you! I don’t want to see anyone…why are you even here, if you stay you’ll get hurt, just _go away!_ All I can do…all I can do is hurt people around me! That’s all I’ve ever been good at! That’s…that’s it…”

Rose dissipated the bubble that had been protecting her from Ruby’s harsh waves of heat, ignoring the red Gem’s warnings as she gathered the trembling mess into her arms. Ruby struggled and kicked and yelled, burning Rose in a few places in the wake of her dramatic reactions, but Rose simply endured it and waited for Ruby’s tantrum to end. Eventually the red Gem burnt herself out, her body heaving as she attempted to recover from the dramatic fit she had just thrown. Rose set her back down on the slowly cooling ground as her tears stopped flowing, crouching down to speak to her on her own level.

“Ruby, you aren’t good at hurting people. Look at how much you hurt yourself when you think you’ve done something like that. Your heart is big and passionate, and that’s why you have trouble seeing past your own way of attempting to help people. But right now, Sapphire doesn’t want or need your help…she probably just wants your support, and your honesty. No matter what transpires between you two, there isn’t anything that you two can’t overcome together…trust me, I’ve been watching you since you first formed Garnet and were able to exist as her for an extended period of time. Don’t you both agree that being Garnet is the happiest both of you have ever been?

“Both of you love each other and understand each other enough to know that even when you fight, you can still help each other come to a sound understanding…why don’t we go and see Sapphire? You two can talk now that you’ve cooled down. I think you’ll both agree that you’ll feel better after you get this smoke cleared out that’s choking you. And trust me, it’s not just toxic for one of you…I guarantee that Sapphire is just as upset and worried about hurting you as you are about her.”

Ruby stood and wiped her eyes one last time, her fists clenched as she began stomping off in Sapphire’s direction. Rose smiled slightly to herself before lifting her skirts and getting up to follow the strong and silent Gem. As the minutes passed and they trekked through Sapphire’s land of ice, Pearl found herself busy attempting to have a similar conversation with Sapphire. The blue Gem was much quieter and almost more offensive in her silence than Ruby was despite her fiery, burning nature. Ruby was like a firework; she starting cooling off after her embers exploded and ceased their burning. Sapphire’s emotions, on the other hand, were more like a slow burn, an icy sheet that only expanded with time and simmered with a passion that was much deeper than it might appear on the surface.

“Sapphire—”

“I already know why you’re here, Pearl, and there’s no need to waste words on me that I already know you’ve come to deliver. There is no need for you and Rose to worry so incessantly about Ruby and I. Ruby has a short fuse—she’ll burn out eventually, and when she does I’m sure that our differences will settle themselves.”

Pearl wasn’t a weak enough Gem to step down after such harsh words, though; she was on a mission, and she was going to see it through for both Rose’s sake and the sake of her new friends. “Well, I’m glad that you seem to have everything figured out right up front, Sapphire. You’re just sitting with the answers all lined up neat and tidy in a box topped with a bow, right? If you’re so sure about how things are going to work themselves out, why don’t you just go and make up with Ruby right now? Or is Ruby’s future the only one that you’re really aware of…you’re so focused on everyone else’s future that you don’t even know what to do with yourself?”

“Excuse me—!”

“Be honest, Sapphire. Look, just take a look around! Look at what you’ve done to this side of the island! You’ve turned it into a frigid wasteland…is that what your heart is feeling like right now? Smooth, cold, and empty…because despite knowing the essential future, you were still hurt by Ruby and—”

“No, I wasn’t! Ruby couldn’t possibly hurt me, not in a million years! Not even if she tried…and she wouldn’t…” Pearl could hear the trembling of Sapphire’s words, and she remained silent and attentive. “Ruby can’t hurt me, but I can certainly hurt her. I _did_ hurt her…I hurt the Gem that I care about most in this entire universe, and I know I could have avoided it. I could have avoided it, I saw so many different paths and I still wasn’t able to avoid this one, to avoid the one that would make Ruby cry…what kind of Gem _am_ I, what kind of fusion partner? I don’t deserve Ruby…she’s so earnest and strong and quick to jump to the aid of anyone that might need it. Not me; I just sit back and try to determine the best path to take, I never consider anything but the outcome…and by the time the outcome happens, I’ve already missed the pivotal turning point in the present actions…I’m so _horrible…_ ”

“Hey, I don’t wanna hear words like that coming out of that beautiful mouth of yours ever again, you hear?”

Sapphire was startled by the sound of Ruby’s voice, and Ruby couldn’t help but smirk at the thought that she had actually startled Sapphire for once. Sapphire turned to see her, brushing her hair out of her face as she examined Ruby’s lax form, standing still with her arms folded over her chest. Pearl turned to look as Rose and Ruby approached, a calm settling in her heart as she realized that the two were arriving just in time. While she was sure that she would have been able to eventually talk the blue Gem out of her spiral of self-loathing, she was glad that Ruby was here now to offer her the comfort and reassurance that she really needed.

“Ruby…?”

“Horrible? Please, Sapphire, we both know that you’re the best thing that’s ever happened to me. No matter how many times we argue or fight, no matter how many times we might not end up on the same page, my whole life wouldn’t even have a chance to experience any of those circumstances if you weren’t in it. Life wouldn’t be worth living if you weren’t in it…even if sometimes we end up not getting along. Getting to experience a million fights with you is infinitely better than having to live my life without you…and I’m sorry for being such a blockhead.”

“Blockhead?” Sapphire sniffed, wiping her eye before rising to approach Ruby as the ice surrounding her and the rest of the landscape began to recede. “If anyone is the blockhead here, it’s me. I…I never seem to focus on the right things, it’s like it’s impossible for me to grasp things that are right in front of me because I’m always reaching for the things that are just out of my grasp. But you’re the one that keeps me grounded, you’re the one that makes me forget the future when I’m with you…you’re the one that helps me hold on to things in the present, and right now you’re the only thing that I want to touch.”

A furious blush exploded across Ruby’s cheeks, and Pearl and Rose did their best to hide their giggles over the way that the naturally red Gem somehow got redder. Ruby cleared her throat and stuttered helplessly, stumbling clumsily through mumbled words as she nervously scratched the back of her head. Sapphire floated over to the flustered Gem, stopping directly in front of her as she took her steaming hands in her own dainty, gloved ones and sealed the deal by giving the burning red Gem a kiss.

Steam rose up from between their lips like a signal of their love, and Rose and Pearl tittered and did their best not to stare, although it was hard even as simple bystanders to not get intoxicated by the aura of love that pulsated out from between the two infatuated Gems. Ruby retaliated by scooping Sapphire into her arms in the next moment, smothering her in kisses before the squirming of the blue Gem had them both giggling and rolling around on the ground like giddy teenagers. Before Rose and Pearl knew it a bright light engulfed the two elated Gems; from the light emerged the tranquil and familiar Garnet. She stood from her lounging position and came to stand in front of Rose and Pearl, pulling them both into an almost bone crushing hug that communicated to the two Gems that what they had done was worth a thankfulness beyond words.

“Don’t worry Garnet,” Rose spoke as she stroked the Gem’s trembling back. “We’re here for you. We’re your family now. Pearl and I aren’t going anywhere, and we’ll always be there when you need some patching up.”

Pearl tentatively wiped the fresh tears that glittered on Garnet’s face, finding herself equally overwhelmed with emotion in the face of the trial they had all overcome together. “Rose is right. No matter what, we all have to be here for each other now. We’re all we have left…and I promise you, at the end of this war, we will all be standing hand in hand, ready to face the dawning of the new day that awakens for us together.”


End file.
